Part One: The Letters
Chapter One: Fourth Grade
September 13, 2002
Dear Collin,
I’ll start by saying that I don’t like you very much. I already wasn’t excited about this stupid pen pal project, and then Mrs. Haywood told me I’d have to write to a boy because there aren’t enough girls in your class, and boys are gross.
Anyway, I’m supposed to ask you what it’s like to live in Chicago. What’s the weather like there? What are some things to do? I live in Glendale, Arizona, but my mom always tells people we live in Phoenix. It’s hot here most of the time, and I like to go to the movie theater or swim in my pool.
Okay, that’s all.
Sincerely,
Glory Parker
September 19, 2002
Dear Glory,
I don’t really like you that much either. Blake Thomas made fun of me for getting a letter that had pink kittens drawn all over the envelope. When I told him to shut up, he punched me in the face, and he has bigger fists than anyone in the fourth grade. Luckily I turned my head and he only got me in the jaw, but now I’ll have to explain to my mom why I have a bruise there. Why do you think boys are gross? My older sister Brittany loves boys. She talks about them all the time. It’s really annoying.
Chicago is hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It gets so cold sometimes that it freezes the snot in your nose.There are a lot of things to do here, like go to museums and baseball games, but we don’t have enough money to go to them. Sometimes I go hang out at the arcade with my brothers.
That’s cool that you have a pool, your family must be rich. We have a pool at our apartment building, but it’s only open for two months and it smells like burnt beans.
Goodbye,
Collin Finlay
November 6, 2002
Dear Collin,
I’m sorry you got punched in the face. I’m drawing fairy dinosaurs on the envelope of this letter, so hopefully no one makes fun or you for that.
How many siblings do you have? I’ve always wished for a brother or sister to play with, or even fight with. Anything would be better than being by myself all the time. I mean, I have friends over sometimes, and once in a while my mom will play board games with me, but mostly I’ll just swim or read or look at constellations. And yes, we are rich, but not rich enough to buy me a new telescope. What are some things that you like to do?
If we are going to keep writing to each other, I need you to tell me what you look like so I don’t think of you as some faceless blob. I’ll tell you what I look like. I have brown eyes and blonde hair that’s really curly and everyone always thinks it’s permed, but it’s not. I’m taller than Avery Wilson, but not as tall as Courtney McFarland, and I have freckles on my nose.
Sincerely,
Glory Parker
P.S. I still wish you were a girl.
November 17, 2002
Dear Glory,
What kind of a name is Glory? It reminds me of The Battle Hymn of the Republic. I have a sister and two brothers older than me, and a brother and a sister younger than me. Believe me, having siblings is no fun. They’re always bothering you and blaming you for stuff, and sometimes I just want to be left alone. It would be so nice to have my own room where I could read and listen to music without everybody talking and watching TV all the time. There’s eight of us in our apartment. My parents are in one room, and my sisters are in the other, and my brothers and I sleep in the front room, so we’re always getting woken up when someone comes out to get a drink or when my dad leaves for work early in the morning.
Anyway, everybody says I look like Harry Potter, except my glasses are square and not round, and I don’t have a scar on my forehead. So I guess that’s what I look like.
Goodbye,
Collin Finlay
